A HONEYMOON IN PIGMY-LAND

Rangitikei Advocate and Manawatu Argus, Volume XXXI, Issue 8787, 15 April 1907, Page 4

A HONEYMOON IN PIGMY-LAND

February 24.

Major Powell-Cotton, the wellknown explorer and hunter, has just returned with his wife from an exciting trip through the great forests of the Eastern Congo. The pair were married in East Africa in 1905, the: bride having gone out from England to join her fiance, and since then Mrs Powell-Oottou lias shared her husband’s hardships and dangers, and has lived for months among the pigmies in the heart of the Ituri forest —the first white woman ever seen by these little people. The excitement of the latter when they first saw Mrs Powell-Oottou was extraordinary. Perhaps the chief source of wonder was her long hair, which for the special benefit of the dwarfs she would let down, while they crowded round her tent in speechless wonder. During the stay of many mouths the major and his wife never had the least difficulty with the forest tribes. Mrs|Powell-Cottou learned a little of their language and did excellent medical work among them. She was always treated with the greatest respect by the natives.

On the conclusion of the work in the forest the expedition proceeded to Lake Albert Edward, where the explorer visited a tribe of lake dwolors_a little closed community who spend their whole "lives lon the water. Their houses are all built on floating platforms, anchored to long poles. The main floating village consists of thirty lints, while two others comprise ten and seven respectively. Some of these grass huts were built round a small square platform about 95ft. by 10ft., This forms the common back yard, and practically the world of the children.

In October, while on the brinks of tbo Sassa. river, near Lake Albert Edward, Major Powell-Oottou bad tlic narrowest possible escape from death. The oxiioclitiou was in a country infested by lions who played round tbo camp every night, but always disappeared before daybreak. One morning, however, the explorer saw a very largo solitary male making his way back to the jungle ou the river banks, and, cutting him off, fired, wounding the beast badly. Meanwhile the animal got into the brushwood, where it was almost hidden, and a hour and a half later Major Powell-Oottou, thinking the lion was too badly wounded to move, approached, accompanied by some of his men, who threw mud at th« beast. The latter, however, did not budge, but ou a sandal and a stick being hurled at him ho rose, emitting a loud roar, and charged, open-mouthed at Major Powell-Oottou, who was only a few yards distant. The latter instantly fired both barrels, but this failed to stop the liou, and the explorer, ou turning to his bearer for another gun, found that he had bolted. There being no time to reload,Major Powell-Cotton hurled the gun into the lion’s face and turned to rank As he did soothe wounded animal sprang, and digging his claws into the Major’s back and legs,, bore him to the ground. The infuriated lion, which it was subsequently found had had its jaw smashed by one of the bullets, tore its victim’s coat to shreds, aud vainly to raise its head aud get at the eyes. It then attempted to tear open the abdomen, but owing to a folded copy of Punch which Major Cotton had iu his pocket, the brute’s claws were unable to penetrate to the flesh. While Major Powell-Oottou lay almost crushed under the animal one of the porters rushed at the lion and hit him ou the head with a stick. At the same time the Wagauda headman with great pluck, ran up aud slashed the animal across the eyes with a whip. This diverted the beast’s attention, and at that moment an Askari shot him dead. It was thou found that the Major had received 17 wounds. He, however, rode to the nearest Belgian camp, where he was nursed back to health by Comunmdaut Bastieu.